6 Best Herb Plants For Attracting Pollinators That Old Farmers Swear By
Learn the six herbs old farmers use to attract bees and butterflies. These time-tested plants boost biodiversity and are essential for a thriving garden.
You walk out to your garden on a still July morning and the silence is the first thing you notice. The squash blossoms are wide open, but nothing is visiting them. This quiet garden is a sign of a deeper problem, one that directly impacts your harvest and the health of your land. Choosing the right plants isn’t just about what you can eat; it’s about building a resilient system, and that system runs on pollinators.
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Why Old-Time Herbs Are a Pollinator’s Best Friend
The best pollinator plants are rarely the fanciest ones in the catalog. Old-fashioned, heirloom herbs are often "unimproved," meaning their nectar and pollen are easily accessible, unlike modern hybrids bred for double petals or unusual colors that can block insects from their reward. These herbs co-evolved with pollinators for millennia, creating a perfect partnership that modern breeding sometimes forgets.
The real value for a hobby farmer is that these plants do more than one job. A patch of comfrey isn’t just feeding bumblebees; it’s also producing nutrient-rich mulch for your tomatoes. The lavender attracting honeybees is also destined for drying and use in the home. On a small farm where every square foot has to count, multi-functional plants are non-negotiable.
These herbs are also tough. They are survivors, often self-seeding and thriving on a bit of neglect, which is a blessing when you have a day job. They don’t need perfect soil or a complicated feeding schedule. They simply get on with the job of growing, blooming, and supporting the ecosystem you’re trying to build.
‘Starflower’ Borage: The Ultimate Bee Magnet
If you plant only one new herb for bees, make it borage. Its brilliant blue, star-shaped flowers are a sight to behold, but their real magic is how they constantly replenish their nectar. Bees can visit the same flower multiple times a day and find a fresh meal waiting, making your garden an incredibly efficient and reliable food source.
Borage is a classic companion plant for a reason. Plant it near your strawberries or tomatoes to ensure heavy fruit set from all the bee activity it generates. The young leaves have a refreshing cucumber flavor perfect for summer drinks, and the flowers are edible, adding a beautiful touch to salads. It’s a plant that gives back in multiple ways.
Be warned, though: borage self-seeds with enthusiasm. This can be a huge advantage, as it will pop up in bare spots, acting as a living mulch and ensuring you have it year after year without effort. But if you want a perfectly tidy garden, you’ll need to pull the seedlings in the spring. For most of us, it’s a welcome volunteer.
‘Munstead’ English Lavender for Season-Long Blooms
Not all lavender is created equal when it comes to pollinators. Many of the French and Spanish varieties are less hardy and have a shorter bloom time. ‘Munstead’ English Lavender is the gold standard for a working garden because it’s compact, incredibly cold-hardy, and produces a profusion of blooms over a very long season.
Its real strength is providing a "nectar bridge." It starts flowering in early summer after the spring fruit trees have finished and continues steadily through the hottest months. This consistent food source is vital for sustaining bee, butterfly, and hoverfly populations, keeping them in your garden right when your vegetable crops need them most.
Once established, ‘Munstead’ is the definition of low-maintenance. It thrives in the poor, gravelly soil that other plants despise and is exceptionally drought-tolerant. This isn’t a plant you need to coddle; it’s a resilient partner that asks for little more than a sunny spot and a light pruning after it flowers.
‘Bocking 14’ Comfrey: A Bumblebee Powerhouse
Comfrey is a legendary plant, but it has a reputation for being an aggressive spreader. That’s why you must seek out the ‘Bocking 14’ cultivar. It’s a sterile variety, meaning it will not spread by seed, only by root cuttings. This gives you complete control over a plant that is otherwise one of the most valuable you can grow.
Its drooping, bell-shaped purple flowers are perfectly designed for the long tongues of bumblebees. You will see them working the comfrey patch from dawn until dusk, and their presence will have a major impact on pollinating nearby crops like peppers, blueberries, and tomatoes. The sheer biomass of flowers on a mature comfrey plant is staggering.
Beyond the bees, comfrey is a soil-building machine. Its deep taproot mines nutrients from the subsoil, which are then stored in its leaves. You can "chop and drop" the leaves as a nutrient-dense mulch, add them to the compost pile to accelerate decomposition, or soak them in water to make a potent liquid fertilizer. It’s a closed-loop fertility system in plant form.
Creeping Thyme: A Living Mulch for Pollinators
Think of creeping thyme as a functional groundcover that explodes into a pollinator paradise. When it blooms in early summer, its dense mat of green foliage becomes a solid sheet of purple or white flowers. This "flower carpet" is irresistible to a huge diversity of small, beneficial insects.
While honeybees love it, creeping thyme is especially good at attracting tiny native bees, hoverflies, and beneficial wasps. These are the unsung heroes of the garden. Hoverfly larvae, for example, are voracious aphid predators. By planting creeping thyme, you are rolling out the welcome mat for a free, self-regulating pest control service.
Use it strategically. Plant it along the edges of garden beds, between paving stones in a walkway, or on a patch of ground too dry for much else. It will suppress weeds, conserve soil moisture, and turn otherwise unproductive space into a beautiful and functional habitat. It solves multiple problems at once.
Anise Hyssop: The Long-Blooming Pollinator Plant
As summer wanes, many nectar sources begin to dry up, but this is when Anise Hyssop (Agastache foeniculum) hits its stride. Its tall, sturdy spikes of purple flowers begin blooming in mid-summer and don’t quit until the first hard frost. This makes it an absolutely critical late-season food source for pollinators stocking up for winter.
The sheer number and variety of pollinators it attracts is incredible. You’ll see honeybees, bumblebees, native bees of all sizes, butterflies, and even hummingbirds all visiting the same plant. If your squash and beans are still flowering in late August, having a stand of Anise Hyssop nearby will ensure they get the attention they need.
This is another plant that works for you. The leaves have a wonderful anise or licorice scent and make a delicious herbal tea. As a member of the mint family, it’s vigorous and resilient, but it’s a well-behaved clumper, not an aggressive runner. It’s a beautiful, fragrant, and profoundly useful addition to any farm garden.
‘Pacific Beauty’ Calendula for Beneficial Insects
Calendula, or pot marigold, is an old-timer’s secret weapon. While bees certainly visit its sunny, open-faced flowers, its real talent lies in attracting other beneficial insects. The easily accessible pollen draws in hoverflies, lacewings, and ladybugs.
This is integrated pest management at its smartest. You’re not just feeding pollinators; you’re recruiting a security team. The larvae of those insects are some of the most effective predators of aphids and other soft-bodied pests. A row of calendula planted near your brassicas or roses can significantly reduce pest pressure.
The ‘Pacific Beauty’ mix is a great choice, offering a range of yellow and orange shades and blooming prolifically all season long, especially if you deadhead it. The petals are edible and have a long history of use in salves and oils. It’s also known to deter nematodes in the soil and will gently self-seed to return the following year.
Designing Your Pollinator-Friendly Herb Spiral
An herb spiral is one of the most efficient ways to pack a diversity of plants into a small space. It’s a simple, raised spiral bed, usually made of stone or brick. This design cleverly creates multiple microclimates: the top is sunny, dry, and warm, while the base is cool, shady, and moist.
This structure is perfect for housing all the herbs on this list.
- Top (Dry & Sunny): Plant your ‘Munstead’ Lavender and Creeping Thyme here. They need excellent drainage and full sun.
- Middle Slopes (Moderate Sun & Moisture): This is ideal for Borage, Anise Hyssop, and Calendula.
- Bottom (Moist & Shady): The base is a great spot for your ‘Bocking 14’ Comfrey, which appreciates more moisture to fuel its lush growth.
By concentrating these different herbs in one structure, you create a one-stop shop for pollinators. An insect can move from the thyme to the borage to the lavender without wasting energy. You’re not just planting flowers; you’re designing an efficient, beautiful, and highly productive foraging station that will serve your entire garden.
Bringing these workhorse herbs onto your farm isn’t just about attracting more bees. It’s about building a smarter, more interconnected system where your plants support your pollinators, control pests, and build soil fertility all at once. This is the foundation of a resilient and productive hobby farm.
